All right. He said, “Do you remember taking some money away from me?”
“Yes.” Very prompt, and without any emotional reaction at all. Uhl’s eyes were still closed but in a more relaxed way now, no longer squeezed shut. He seemed calm now, his answers calm, almost mechanical.
Parker said, “Where is that money? The money you took from me.”
“I don’t know.”
That couldn’t be the right answer. Was the drug not working? Had he given too little? He looked at Uhl’s face, but he couldn’t believe Uhl was acting. The drug was affecting him, it had to be. Then how could he come up with an answer like that?
Was it true? Had the damn fool managed to lose the money sometime in the last five days?
Parker said, “What did you do with the money?”
“Left it with Ed.”
That was better. There was an explanation in here somewhere. All he had to do was work out the right questions to ask. He picked up the pencil and wrote Ed on the paper, then said, “Ed who?”
“Saugherty.”
“Spell it. Will you spell that name?”
Uhl spelled it, slowly and steadily, like a talking computer, and Parker wrote it down.
Parker said, “You left the money with Ed Saugherty. What did Ed Saugherty do with the money?”
“Hid it.”
“He hid it from you?”
Uhl frowned. The question was too complicated for him somehow.
Parker found another way to phrase it. “Did he hide the money for you?”
Uhl’s expression cleared. He was contented again. He said. “Yes.”
“Do you know where he hid it?”
“No.”
“When did he hide it?”
“Friday.”
That would be yesterday. Parker said, “Were you staying with Ed Saugherty before you came here?”
“Yes.”
“Why did you leave there?”
“Matt Rosenstein was after me.”
“How do you know?”
“He beat up Barri.”
“Did you see Barri?”
“Yes.”
“Did you call the doctor for her?” “Yes.”
Parker grimaced. He and Uhl had been doing a long-distance dance up and down the eastern seaboard for three days. He’d gotten to Pearson before Uhl, but Uhl had caught up. And then Uhl had gotten to Barri Dane before Parker, but Parker didn’t catch up. But that was all right, because Parker had gotten to Joyce Langer before Uhl, and that meant everything was caught up.
But if only the timing had been a little different somewhere along the line.
Parker said, “Did Barri Dane tell Matt Rosenstein anything?”
“Phone number.”
“What phone number?”
“Ed’s phone number.”
“Could Rosenstein get to Ed through that phone number?”
“Yes.”
Which meant Rosenstein was now a full day ahead of him. Had he gotten the money away from this Ed Saugherty?
Parker said, “Where do you know Ed Saugherty from?”
“High school.”
Parker frowned. It was another strange answer. He said, “What does Ed Saugherty do?”
“Works for a computer company.”
“You mean he’s legit?”
“Yes.”
